Rail connecting device



Nov. 3, 1959 v w. H. CUSHMAN 2,911,154

RAIL CONNECTING DEVICE Filed July 21 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 i 25 l 1 i ig4 75' 5 ll" i i I "7/6 I t I: H 1 i W I 4/ 96 -zfi ]NVENTOR.

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, 25- BY W CM Nov. 3, 1959 w. H. CUSHMAN RAIL CONNECTING DEVICE 2Sheets-Sheet. 2

Filed July 21, 1955 Tlllll INVENTOR.

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2,911,154 ,RAIL CONNECTING DEVICE H. Cushm'an, Missoula, Mont.Application July '21, 1955, Serial No. 523,434 7'Claims. (Cl. ass-e121'This'invention relates generally to railroads and more particularly toimprovements in fastening steel rails to underlying tie supportingmeans. I

fThe time honored and conventional practice of constructing railroads isby joining steel rails'to an undersupporting wood tie system by the useof metal tie plates ]and spikes; the tie plates engaging and holding theflange or foot of the rails and the spikes being driven into the ties tohold the tie plates to the underlying wood ties. While such systems havebeen in use for many years, it has'long' been recognized that a moresatisfactory means "of connecting tie-to-rail is needed, especially forhigh speed rail traffic which subjects the roadbed, ties and rails to aterrific pounding action resulting in their quick breakdown. The maindifiiculty of the familiar tie and spike system of connection lies inthe inability of the spike to maintain its embeddedgrip With the tieunder the constant pounding and loosening action imposed thereon by railtra'flic. One of the prime causes for the defects in the tie and spikesystem lies'in the inability to maintain a sound roadbed. It is readilyunderstandable that under the pounding of rail trail-1c, the crushedrock and other ballast materials employed in forming a supporting bedfor the tie system is subject to settling and spread action so thateventually high and low spots occur in the underlying support for theties. When such an instance occurs, the rails are flexed upwardly anddownwardly under the passage of rail trafiic and the tie connectedthereto is subjected to high pounding action, resulting usually in itssplitting and disintegration followed by the release of the tie platesand the spikes and thus the eventual breakdown of the railroad.

It is also true that after a'period of use the ballast becomes settledand presents a substantially steady support 'for the railroad. However,in accomplishing such settling period, the ties are subjected tosplitting'action due largely to the use of the spikes, so that the needfor periodic replacement of the ties is a constantmaintenance project.'The m'ajor damaging factor in replacing the ties lies in the resultingdisturbanceof the underlying support due largely to the use of the'spikesystem which requires sufiicient'distance or clearance beneath the tieto be removed to permit its 'detachment from the spikes, etc.

Thus'the removal of the ties under present practice requires thedestruction of the settled ballast support therebeneath and recreatesthe initial 'problemof an unstable bed beneaththe replacing tie.

The pounding of the trafiic also tends to loosen the plate and spikeconnection, giving rise to increased noise 'and'vibration in the-passageof the rail trailic. This causes an unsteady and unstable ride andgenerally creates a system of uneven rails, that is, rails which do notalign in true'paralleli-sm and are not maintained at uniform heightalongthe bed. All of these factors deter from the passage of railtraffic athigh speeds and create an ever increasing'problem-of roadmaintenance. With the present day advent for high speed rail traflic,the need for an improved means of connecting ties to rails is even more2 pronounced than in the past. As a consequence, I have devised animproved means of connecting the ties and rails whereby in general theabove briefly outlined diiiiculties are overcome and eliminated and auniformly supported rail essential for high speed and heavy traflic ismade possible.

Briefly, the improved rail connecting means of this invention includes awedgesupporting system capableof quick adjustment to regulate theelevation of the rails. A means for automatically or manually regulatingthe elevation of the rail to accommodate settling of the tie is alsoembodied in my connector means and a means for positively joining therail to the tie in a manner to discourage their loosening is alsoprovided. Of added consequence in my device is an improved means forinterjoining the rail and'ties so that such may be readily disassembledfor the replacement of worn ties. After disconnecting my improvedconnector device, tie replacement requires merely sliding the tieunderneath the rails without necessarily disturbing the underlyingsupport or ballast bed.

The main object of my invention is to provide a new and improved meansfor interconnecting railroad ties and rails so as to insure a uniformlysupported rail system essential for high speed and heavy railroadtraflic.

Another important object of my invention is to provide a new andimproved means for interconnecting rails and railroad ties whicheliminates the use of spike means as familiarly known.

Another important object ofthis invention is to-provide a new andimproved interconnecting means for rails and railroad ties embodyingmeans for automatically keeping the rail in constant positive connectionwith the underlying support tie, thereby reducing wear on the ties anddecreasing traific noise.

A still further object of this invention is to provide a new andimproved means for interconnecting railroad ties and rails whichpromotes a more constant and positive means of maintaining rail spacingand the uniform eleva tion of such rails above the track bed.

An additional object of this invention is to providea new and improvedco'nnectormeans for joining rails and railroad ties so as to'promoteeasyremoval of the ties without disturbing the roadbed thus todecrease main- 'tenance time and cost.

Still another object of'this -in'vention is to provide an inclinedwedgeplane and yoke means for joining rails to railroadties andassociating such m'eaiis so as to maintain automatically a positiveconnection between the tie'and the rail. V i

The above and further objects,- features and advantages of thisinvention will be recognized by those familiar and skilled in the artfrom the following detailed description of its features as found in'thepreferredembodiment'and modified form illustrated-in the accompanyingdrawings.

In the drawings: a

Figure l is a view in side elevation looking endwise at a rail shown inthe cross section and illustrating particularly the assembly andoperating action of the improved rail connector means of this invention;

Figure 2 is atop plan view ofthe'assembly illustrated in Figure 1;

' Figure; 3' is a cross sectional view taken 'throughthe 'tie and yokemeans of myinvention,substantially at line :sembly; and

Figure 6 is another perspective showing a 'secondmodi- 3 fied form ofyoke connector, similar to the modified connector illustrated in Figure5, and useful in the improved assembly of this invention.

Turning now specifically to the preferred embodiment of my connectingdevice as illustrated in Figures 1-4 of the drawings, it will beappreciated that while a single rail and connector is shown, two suchcombinations are present at each tie, one adjacent either end thereof toform a two rail system. Numeral represents a normal wood railroad tie tosupport a conventional steel rail 11; a plurality of such ties beingspaced at intervals along the roadbed and extending transversely of theaxis of a pair of parallel spaced rails according to convention.

Considering Figures 1, 2 and 3 in view of the exploded perspective shownin Figure 4, it will be understood that a flange portion 12 of the railmember 11 is embraced along one edge by a pair of hook elements orlocking ears 13, 13 which are formed integrally with and extend upwardlyfrom a cast metal tie plate member 15. The tie plate 15 also includes aplatform portion 16 which immediately engages and presents a restingsurface to the lower face of the flange portion 12. The gen eral bodysection 17 of the tie plate 15 is disposed in a plane inclined to thehorizontal in its assembled relationship with the tie 10 while theplatform portion 16 assumes a substantially horizontal position forsupporting the flange of the'rail. The underside of the tie plate isfitted with a recessed area 18 bordered by two spaced longitudinallyextending lip portions 19, 19 which depend from the plane of the undersurface on the body portion 17. Such recessed portion is arranged toreceive a metal or wooden wedge member 20 so that the latter slidinglyengages the undersurface of the tie plate and is disposed between thedepending lip portions 19, 19.

The wedge member 20 presents an inclined upper surface 21 to the recessportion 18 to ofiset the inclination of the tie plate body portionthereby to dispose the platform portion 16 horizontally for supportingthe rail member 11. The wedge member 20 further is arranged to rest onthe top or upper face of the tie member 10 and is suitably biased orurged away from the outer end of the tie as by means of a spring systemdesignated generally at 22 which necessarily must provide a constant endthrust on the wedge member to insure a constant takeup of any spacewhich occurs between the tie plate and the tie member 10.

As illustrated in particular in Figure 1, the spring system 22 shownincludes a metal anchor block 23 suitably pinned or otherwise secured tothe upper face of the tie member 10 as by pin means 24, received in oneof several spaced holes (not shown) drilled in the tie. A

guide rod 22a extends from the anchor block 23 and v is disposedcoaxially of a compression spring member 22b, such guide rod entering anopening in the adjacent end of the wedge member 20. The illustration ofthe spring means is extremely simple as presented and it will beunderstood that other spring systems readily will be suggested to thosefamiliar with the art.

With further regard to the wedge member 20, it should be noted that thesame bears a width substantially conforming to the width of theunderlying tie so as to present a full support surface to the tie plate,the latter member of which is shown slightly wider than the wedge membersuch that the depending lip portions 19 thereon lie outwardly ofthelateral edges of the wedge member and the surface 18 thereon thus liescoextensively with the surface it engages on the wedge member. In thismanner full support of the tie is transmitted to the rail.

From the foregoing it will be understood that I have described thus faran instrumentality for supporting the railmember 11 along one side byengaging one edge thereof at its lower flange by means of the hookportions 13 of the tie plate. Note in this regard that the inside ofsuch hook or ear portions is suitably inclined to wedge with the upperface of the rail flange 12. The provision of the spring urged wedgemember 20 serves as a means for automatically adjusting the vertical displacement of the rail and for taking up any play which occurs betweenthe rail and the tie member.

To complete the connection of the rail to the tie additional means mustbe provided for holding the opposite edge of the flange portion 12 ofthe rail and such mechanism will now be described.

As illustrated best in Figures 1 and 4' of the drawings, the preferredmode of attaching or holding the rail and tie plates to the underlyingtie comprises a substantially U-shaped lower yoke member 25 which ismade of cast steel or the like and arranged to embrace the side andunder walls of the tie member, substantially as illustrated in Figure 3of the drawings. In particular it will be noticed that the yoke member25 comprises a pair of upright parallel spaced arm members 26, 26 eachof which includes a rack portion 27 have serrated teeth 28 cut into itsouter face. Each rack is adjoined to and, bordered along its lateraledges by a pair of metal guide rails 29, 29. A cross arm 30interconnects the lower ends of the two upright arms 26 with such beingarranged to lie beneath the tie 10 in assembly as best illustrated inFigure 3. Note also that a gusset portion 31 is formed substantially atthe junction of the ends of the cross arm 30 and the upright arm member26; such gussets being received in corner notches formed at the lowerlateral edges of the tie member so asto lock the yoke member againstdisplacement along the longitudinal axis of the tie.

To maintain the yoke member in a substantially upright positiontransverse to the longitudinal axis of the tie, a metal gage plate 35having recessed portions 36, 36 at its opposite ends is adapted toembrace and extend between the upper ends of the yoke member 25 withsuch recessed portions accepting the upper ends of the rack portions 27.

The gage plate is located and held in a fixed position on the tie bymeans of a cut-out formed in the upper face of said tie; it being notedthat the gage plate has a triangular cut-out 37 extending inwardly ofone edge with the apex thereof substantially on the transverse axis ofthe gage plate. With regard particularly to the triangular cut-out 37,see Figure 2, wherein such is shown to match the corresponding recessformed in the upper face of tie member 10. This system locates the gageplate with respect to the longitudinal axis of the tie, maintains theupright position of the yoke member when the members 35 and 25 areassembled in embracing relationship with the tie member and furtherserves to regulate the gage of the track or space between rails.

An upper locking yoke member 40, shown best at the upper end of theexploded perspective view Figure 4, is designed to cooperate with theyoke member 25 to engage and hold down the other lateral edge of theflange 12 on the rail member. Particularly, the locking yoke 40 has twodepending arm portions 41, 41 each of which is provided with serratedteeth 42, 42 on its inner face for engaging the teeth 28 on the loweryoke arm portions 27. It will be understood that the teeth 42 aredirected generally upward while the teeth 28 are of the lower yoke aredirected downward so that such two sets of teeth interlock with oneanother in assembly.

The arm portions 41 of the upper yoke are interconnected suitably attheir upper ends by a cross arm portion 43; such upper yoke preferablybeing made of metal such as steel having sufficient resiliency to permitoutward biasing movement of the two arm portions 41, 4 1 as the teeth 42thereon override the teeth 28 during the assembly of the two yokemembers 25 and 40. It will be appreciated that the upper yoke member 40is interlocked with the lower yoke member 25 by suitably aligning thearm portions 41, 41 with end openings 45 formed in the lateralextremities of the tie plate 15, substantially as illusrated in Figure4. By thrusting downwardly on the upper yoke member the arm portions 41thereon are biased outwardly so that the teeth 42 thereon override theteeth 28 on the outer face of the lower yoke arm portions 26. When theupper yoke has thus descended to its desired position the teeth 42 and28 engage and provide a successful interlock between such two membersNote that gusset portions '46, 46 are formed substantially adjacent theupper ends of the arm portions 41 and their intersection with the crossarm member or portion 42; such gusset portions matching the openings 45in the .tie plate so as topositively locate and lock the upper yokemember with the tie plate. Removal of the upper yoke is easilyaccomplished by biasing arms 41 outwardly after releasing and backingolf the wedge 20 so that teeth 42 and 28 may disengage.

A pair of locking ears 47, 47 are provided on the upper yoke and extendoutwardly of the cross arm member 43 thereon. Such serve to engage theupper face of the rail flange portion 12 at portions opposed andc'erresponding to the locking ears i3, 13 of the tie plate. Thus whenthe upper yoke and lower yoke are assembled and the upper yoke thrustdownwardly into the assembled condition, as shown best in Figure l, theear portions 47, 47 of the yoke 40 and ear portions 13, '13 of the tieplate engage and hold the lateral extremities of the rail flangeportion12 in looking the rail to the tie plate. By driving the wedge member 20toward the rail and locating the spring system 22 at a position alongthe tie so that spring 26 exerts a sufficient force to maintain thewedge in a thrust imposing position on the tie plate and tie member theassembly tightly holds the railto the tie. It will be noticed, ofcourse, that the thrust provided by the spring force at the end of thewedge member transmits a vertical upward force to the underside of therail and downward thrust to the upper side of the tie; the spring 26urging the Wedge into this thrust imposing position constantly therebyeliminating all slack and gap between the rail and the tie.

The provision of the plural serrated teeth on the two yoke membersadditionally provides vertical adjustment so that the rail may be raisedor lowered according to the interregulation and engagement of the twoyoke members and the position of the wedge member with respect thereto;the wedge member serving to bring the tie plate snugly against flange 12of the rail and therail flange into tight compression with ears 13 and47.

From the foregoing it is believed that those skilled in the art willrecognize the unique wedging and interlock principles provided by theimproved connecting device of this invention and will further appreciatethe simple means provided thereby for'adjusting the vertical position ofthe rail with respect to the roadbed and underlying supporting tie. Alsodue to the positive location of the yoke members on the tie through thegusset system 31 on the lower yoke and the gage plate 35, it is obviousthat the space between a pair of rails laid on top of the ties will bemaintained constant to eliminate this vexatious maintainence problem.

While the unique connecting device described hereina condition ofinstallation can be met by providing various size yokes, tie plate andgage plates to fit the dimension variations, but with a view towardconversion of present day roadbeds to the use of my present sys-' temand device, resort to alternate attachment means illustrated in Figures5 and 6 is thought best. v

Specifically, in Figure 5 I have shown connector post 50 whichcorresponds favorably and closely to the arm portions 26 of the loweryoke member 25 heretofore described. In each attaching situation twosuch connector posts will be employed, one on either side of the tie,for securing a rail. Member 50 includes a lower extending hook portion51 having an upwardly projecting tooth 52 thereon and such may heslipped laterally onto the tie with the hook portion 51 extendingbeneath the tie with the tooth 52 biting into the underface thereof.Such hook portion 51 will then replace the arm 30 of lower yoke member25 as shown in the assembly shown in Figure 1,for example, and will meetconditions wherein the time members vary in width. A gage block or plate53, substantially of the order of plate 35 illustrated in Figure 4 anddescribed heretofore is employed with-this type of connector. Such gageplate varies somewhat from the plate 35 in that it is closed at itsendsso that the opening 54 which're- I ceives the upper end of the postmember 50 is larger than such post member and provides sufficientleeway,

and clearance to accept variations in tie widths within tolerablelimits. A locking member 55 having serrated teeth 55a on one facethereof is constructed to engage with serrated teeth (not shown) on theouter face 'ber 57 is then'utilized between the locking member 55 andthe closed end wall portion 58 of the gage plate to tightly lock teeth55a with the teeth (not shown) on the .postmember50. Thus the interlockof the assembledpos't and'locking member is carried out. In this regardit will be understood that the post 50 and locking member 55 replace theyoke members of the Figure 1 assembly and that the remaining members ofthat assembly function as before set forth. Since the connection of therail to the tie when "using the assembly of Figure 5 is substantiallyaccording to the concepts first described, a repetition ofsuch operationwill not be made herein, other'than to point out that the modified'gageplate 53 and post connectors of Figure 5 permit the adaptation of theprinciples of my improved connecting device to situations in which thetie members vary in width.

, In Figure 6 still another means forholding down the tie plate, therail and the Wedge member 20 to the underlying tie is shown. In thisparticular modification a con nector post member 60 having asubstantially square lengthwise opening :61 is provided with internalhalf thread members 62, 62 along two sides of such opening. This postmember is further fitted with a half-moon shaped foot plate 63 along oneface near its lower end which in turn is fitted withprojecting teeth 64.This type of post is fitted to a tie by providing a half-moon shapecutout in the side faces of the tie to receive the portion 63 of theconnector post. The teeth portion 64-on the plate 63 are driven into thetie and the half-moon portion 63 registers in the socket or cutoutprovided in the tie. Thus the connector posts will be fitted on oppositesides of the tie and will replace the yoke means first described withoutpassing beneath the tie and independently of the ties width. Such a pairof posts will afford the same type of vertical holding force given bythe yoke assembly first described. A connector bolt 65, flattened on twosides and having an interrupted thread system 66 is then insertedcentrally into the connector post 60 such that by rotating the boltapproximately at any position of its vertical insertion within theconnector post, the teeth members 66 thereon will matingly engage andlock with the interrupted and opposed teeth 62 of the connector post.

type connectors.

wardly along the sides of the tie members so that its upper end, whichis reduced and formed with shoulder portions 68, 68 is received in agage block or plate member 53a, built and constructed substantially onthe order of the gage block 53 shown in Figure 5. With two suchconnector posts 60 mounted on the sides of the tie, the connector bolts65 are dropped into place and given a partial rotation appropriate tobring the ear portions 70 thereon int-o overhanging relation with flange12 on the rail. By then driving the wedge beneath the tie plate 15, thenecessary vertical interconnection of the rail with the tie member isaccomplished. In this regard, 'it will be understood that the tie plateand wedge member'20 remain in the assembly to cooperate in the mannerpreviously described and thus tightly lock the rail with the tie.

In the foregoing three described embodiments of my invention, it will beappreciated that the principles of operation and construction of theassembly are such as to utilize a wedge member to provide a variablemeans for constantly eliminating all gap and slack between the rail andthe tie whenever such occurs. The basic concept in all the devices is totightly hold the rail to the ties so that the two members float or movetogether. With this concept carried out, any movement created by thepassage of the rail traflic will cause the entire rail and tie system tofloat on top of the ballast bed. With the lack of gap or play betweenrail and tie, much of the pounding and noise familiar in present railsystems is eliminated. Since the rail and tie move together as a unit atall times, very little pounding or slapping of the tie occurs as in thepassage of the traflic, thus greatly enhancing the life expectancy ofthe ties. As there are no spikes or such type of penetrating connectorsemployed, the tie member will not be subject to the present splittingaction caused by such spike Since the tie and the rail float as a unitatop of the ballast or roadbed, the roadbed will be depressed andsettled evenly and any lowering of the roadbed will not result in theacute sinking of any individual tie, but a gradual sloping of an entiresection while transmitting the load over a wider area or number of tiesthan is presently experienced. Therefore the problem of regrading orrelaying the roadbed may assume the proportions of merely reballastingbeneath the ties for which mechanized device are known.

It will thus be appreciated that I have provided a new and improvedinterconnecting means leading to remarkable results especiallyadvantageous in constructing and maintaining railroads. Also byemploying my improved connecting device the problem of maintaininguniformly level rails and a flat bed of ballast beneath the rail systemis greatly minimized due principally to the elimination of the movementbetween tie and rail. Therefore it is believed that the presentconnector and its principles and teachings are particularly adapted toadvancing railroading at higher speeds with heavier loads. 7

While I have herein illustrated and described the concepts of myinvention as related to a preferred and two modified embodimentsthereof, it is obvious that numerous changes, modifications, andsubstitutions of materials may be entered into therein withoutnecessarily departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention'disclosed. As a consequence, it is not my intention to belimited to the particular forms of my invention herein described andshown, except as may appear in the following appended claims.

I claim: 1. A connecting device of the class described for bolding arail to a railroad tie, comprising, a U-shaped lower .yoke memberarranged to embrace the bottom and side walls of the tie and havinginwardly extending gusset portions, recess means being formed in the tiefor anchoring reception of the said gusset portions on said lower yokemember, a gage plate mounted transversely of the longitudinal axis ofthe tie and 'socketed in an opening formed in the upper face of thelatter, recessed end, means on said gage plate embracing the upper endsof said lower yoke member to hold the same against longitudinaldisplacement, a wedge block slidingly mounted on the upper face of thetie and passing over the said gage plate, a tie plate superposed on saidwedge block and having guide means for preventing its displacementlaterally of said wedge block, rail holding means on said tie plate forgripping one edge of the foot portion of the rail, a U- shaped upperyoke member having depending arm portions passing through the gage plateand including means interlocking with the arm portions of the lower yokemember, ear means on the upper yoke member for engaging the other edgeof the rail foot portion, and spring means urging said wedge block in adirection appropriate to constantly bias the tie plate upwardly towardsaid ear means of the upper yoke member whereby the rail is securelyheld; the means for interlocking said yoke members permitting verticaladjustment of the upper yoke member for regulating the elevation of therail means with respect to the tie.

2. A rail connective device for joining a rail transversely to arailroad support tie, comprising, tie plate means for underlyinglyengaging the bottom flange of the rail, hook means on said tie platemeans adapted to frictionally engage and hold one edge of the railflange, wedge means disposed between said tie plate means and theunderlying tie for sliding axial movement longitudinally of said tieplate means and transversely of the rail, first connector meansextending along opposite sides and underneath the tie, means anchoringsaid first connector means against displacement longitudinally of thetie including interfitting projection and recess connective meanstherebetween, second connector means overlying said tie plate means andhaving depending portions adapted for interlocking connection with saidfirst connector means, ear means formed on said second connector meansfor overhangingly engaging the other edge of the rail flange, andresilient means engaging one end of said wedge means for axiallythrusting the latter toward the rail and beneath said tie plate means tothereby hold said ear means tightly engaged with the rail flange.

3. A connecting device for joining a rail substantially transversely toan underlying support tie in a railroad, comprising, a wedge blockadapted to be mounted on the upper face of a tie for sliding movementtransversely beneath a rail to be joined to the tie, a tie plate meansoverlying said wedge block and having sliding connection therewith, earmeans formed on said tie plate means and connectively overlapping onelateral edge of the rail, lower yoke means adapted to be mounted on thetie for embracing the bottom and side Walls thereof and including armshaving serrated means, upper yoke means opposing said lower yoke meansand having depending arms provided with additional serrated means fordetachable connection with the serrated means of said lower yoke means,said upper yoke means bridging the tie plate means and having itsdepending arm passing through openings formed therein, additional earmeans formed on the upper yoke means for engaging the other lateral edgeof the rail, gage plate means adapted to be disposed beneath the wedgeblock in a socket formed therefor in the upper face of the tie andincluding end portions connectively embracing the lower yoke member tohold the latter against movementlongitudinally of the tie, and springmeans engaging one end of said wedge block to thrust the same towardsthe rail and beneath said tie plate to force the latter away from thetie and pull said additional ear means tightly against the said otheredge or" the rail flange.

4. A connecting device for fastening a rail, having a widened footflange, substantially transversely to an underlying support tie in arailroad, comprising a tie plate for undersupporting the foot flange ofthe rail and having projecting ear means on its upper face foroverhanging engagement with one lateral edge of the foot flange, upperand lower substantially 'U-shaped yoke members having arms adapted toextend in superposed relation along opposite sides of the tie, said armsincluding opposed teeth for interlocking the upper and lower yokemembers, said upper yoke member passing over said tie plate and saidlower yoke member passing beneath the tie, additional ear means formedon said upper yoke member for overhanging engagement with the otherlateral edge of the foot flange on the rail, wedge means adapted toslide between the tie plate and tie and move substantially transverselytoward the rail for thrusting the tie plate upwardly away from the tieand thereby forcing the foot flange of the rail against said additionalear means on the upper yoke member, thrust imposing means resilientlyengaging said wedge means to constantlyurge the same toward the rail,and gage plate means interlocking Withfi recess formed transversely ofthe tie and extending between and embracing the arms of said yokemembers, the interlocking relationship of said recess and gage plateanchoring the latter against longitudinal and lateral displacementwhereby the yoke members are likewise anchored.

5. A rail holding device of the class described, comprising a tie plateextending beneath a rail and having means overhanging and gripping oneedge of a lower flange portion of the rail, a planar platform portion onsaid tie plate underlying said flange portion, a guide surface formed onthe lower face of said tie plate and intersectingly related to the planeof said platform portion, a

,wedge block mounted between said tie plate and an underlying railroadtie with which the rail is to be joined and having an inclined surfacecooperatively engageable with said guide surface to dispose saidplatform portion sub stantially parallel to the railroad tie, connectormeans extending beneath and along opposite sides of the tie and havingear means projecting over said-tie plate to grip the other edge of therail flange portion, means projecting from said connector means andadapted to cooperate with mating recessed openings formed in the tie forjoining the connector means to the tie, said connector means havingaxially movable portions including serrated means detachablyinterjoining the same whereby the connector means is selectivelyvextensible for regulating the distance above the tie at which the saidear means thereon engage the flange portion of the rail, recess openingsformed in said tie plate for interlocking reception of'said connectormeans, and spring loaded means for driving said wedge block beneath saidtie plate to maintain the block engaged with said guide surface, therebyforcing said tie plate against the overlying rail flange portion.

6. A rail holding device of the class described, comprising a tie plateextending beneath a rail and having means overhanging and gripping oneedge of a lower flange portion of the rail, a planar platform portion ongaged with the rail flanges.

portion, a guide surface formed on the lower face of said form portionsubstantially parallel to the railroad tie,

connector means extending beneath and along opposite sides of the tieand having ear means projecting over said tie plate to grip the otheredge of the rail flange portion, said connector means comprising a pairof post members each provided with projecting teeth means adjacent itslower end for engaging the tie and including a central axially openinghaving first serrated means therein for connective cooperation with abolt member provided with second serrated means, the serrated meansbeing lo'ckingly engaged in selected axial positions of said bolt memberin said opening whereby such post and bolt members may be interlocked,wedge means for maintaining said bolt member in its selected positions,the selected axial positioning ofthe bolt member serving to regulate thedistance above the tie at which the said ear means engage the flangeportion of the rail, and spring loaded means for driving said wedgeblock beneath said tie plate to maintain the block tightly engaged withsaid guide surface, thereby forcing said tie plate against the overlyingrail flange portion.

7.. A rail connective device for joining a rail transversely to arailroad support tie, comprising, tie plate means for underlyinglyengaging the bottom flange of the rail, hook means on said tie platemeans adapted to engage and hold one edge 'of the rail flange, wedgemeans disposed between said tie plate means and the underlying meansoverlying said tie plate means, means interconnecting said first andsecond connector means, ear means on said second connector means foroverhangingly engaging the other edge of the rail flange, and resilientmeans for axially urging the said wedge means toward the rail andbeneath said tie plate means to hold said ear means en- ,ReferencesCited in the file of this patent t UNITED STATES PATENTS Burger Sept.19, 1899 975,199 Ambrose Nov. 8, 1910 1,196,339 Cranney Aug. 20, 19162,626,108 Spencer Jan. 20, 1953 FOREIGN PATENTS Great Britain Sept. 14,1955

